Local Canadian Tire Stores Donate $41,445 to Help Doctors Fix Hearts
Canadian Tire’s annual Fix-A-Heart campaign, which ran from November 22 to December 24, 2018, has raised $41,445 for cardiac care at Royal Jubilee Hospital. With the generous support of the community, the at-the-till campaign has contributed a total of $840,360 since 2003 towards the Heart Health program at Royal Jubilee Hospital.
The initiative was started 15 years ago by former Langford Canadian Tire store owner Peter Spillette, a champion of cardiac care on Vancouver Island. When Peter passed away in 2008, Canadian Tire owners and staff honoured his vision with a $1 million commitment for leading-edge cardiac equipment at Royal Jubilee Hospital. Since then, all donations made at the till during the annual campaign have been matched by the stores.
This year’s Fix-A-Heart initiative is contributing towards the Victoria Hospitals Foundation’s You Are Vital campaign, and is helping fund a new patient monitoring system for the Surgical Heart Health and Cardiovascular Units at Royal Jubilee Hospital. The new equipment is an essential communication tool that will benefit some of the most critically ill patients in our hospital. “The growing generosity of our community speaks to just how important heart health is to all of us” notes Justin Young, owner of Canadian Tire Hillside. “We are grateful for the opportunity to help fund equipment that will directly benefit our friends, neighbours and family.”
Every year, over 200,000 Vancouver Island residents undergo cardiac assessment, and more than 6,300 cardiac procedures are performed through Royal Jubilee Hospital’s Heart Health program. Over the past 30 years, the Heart Health program has become a national leader in cardiac care, overseeing 3,500 inpatient cases annually, with half from outside Greater Victoria
“If you could see the impact local Canadian Tire stores have made to Cardiac Care at Royal Jubilee Hospital, you would see caregivers who have the most advanced diagnostic equipment to ensure faster and more accurate treatment for our patients, specialized beds that help them heal after open heart surgery, and this year, equipment that alert our renowned care teams of any changes or trends in a patient’s symptoms, so they can intervene more quickly,” said Melanie Mahlman, President & CEO of the Victoria Hospitals Foundation. “We are so grateful for the generous support of our local Canadian Tire stores. It is community spirit at its best.”
The You Are Vital campaign is raising $3.5 million to purchase more than 100 pieces of leading-edge equipment for 11 areas of care at Royal Jubilee and Victoria General Hospitals.
To learn more about the You Are Vital campaign, visit www.victoriahf.ca/vital
